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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  5. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  24. That was a fun ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. mouse — for a computer
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. game — wild animals
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. capital — a city
  10. plane — a tool
  11. wind — moving air
  12. lash — an eyelash
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. capital — money
  21. bat — the animal
  22. wind — moving air
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. game — a match

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com